Snowy scenes (newbie)

[CelloDude]

I am modeling a western themed layout in the winter, and I want to give the snow a "starting to melt" look. Would misting some gloss medium over the snow work? Also, should I make the scenery normal first, and then sprinkle the snow over it, or stick the snow on first?[%-)]

[nbrodar]

Check out Rand Hood's articles in the Jan/Feb 1996 issues of MR. He planned the scenery for snow from the ground up, so that the base was white.

Nick

[ARTHILL]

One of our overseas guys posted some great snow pics a couple weeks ago. Maybe he will answer this. What ever he did, it sure was right.

[Anonymous]

A "snow" artical that may be of interest to some of you appears in the current "Classic Toy Trains" magazine. Especially useful for "Holiday" layouts, it compares the pros and cons of various methods. Joe

[wjstix]

Depends on what you want the scene to look like, my last layout (and the one I'm building now) was set in about this time of year so I wanted a "first snowfall" look. I used regular techniques for scenery, started with plaster hills that I painted black or dark brown, then used Woodland Scenics grass products, then finally put snow on it. I didn't want deep drifts, just kind of a "sugar on the corn flakes" look. I guess you could put snow on top of white plaster hills but you lose some contrast - kinda like how weathering a freight car brings out the details better than leaving it shiny.

[Medina1128]

I used plaster in a flour sifter to achieve pretty good looking snowfall. (Don't use your wife's good one!) If you want it to me removable, just dust it on. If you want it to be permanent, spray the area you want to dust with wet water (water with a couple of drops of detergent in it), then dust on the plaster with the sifter. In the areas you want to look like snowmelt, I would use brush on clear gloss coat for better control than with an aerosol can.